CGI so good you don't see it

Nice FX!

From JoBlo.com:

This video clip just blew me away. I seriously had no idea that there was so much CGI in David Fincher's ZODIAC. I guess Finch really didn't need to go out and find/create backdrops that looked like San Fransisco in the 70s. Check out the following clip to see just how much of the background was real, and how much was just a bunch of sh*t the tech dudes added later.

Crazy, huh? Sure, it's not Shia LaBeouf acting with an enormous imaginary robot head, but this is pretty sick too. The big blue screen has to be a little distracting, doesn't it? Anyway, this is a pretty cool little insight for all of you interested in film-making.

(Checking to see when Transformers comes out on DVD... ahh, yes, October 16, 2007)

How [not] to make a great movie

From a Chicagoist.com interview with Audrey Niffenegger, author of Time Traveler's Wife:

C: Even without the knowledge of the impending film, Time Traveler is a very cinematic book. Did you have anything in mind about how it’d look on a screen while you were writing it?

AN: I was thinking very much about what it would look like if I made a movie out of it, but the movie that I would make is not the movie that’s going to be made.

There's a saying that goes "If it isn't broken, don't fix it." Let's hope it's still a half decent movie. It's a pretty damn good book, especially considering the intricate time travel out-of-sequence storytelling.

Another great time/sci-fi/drama book is Flashforward by Robert Sawyer. That would also make an excellent movie.

There aren't any guarantees. Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park turned out okay. But other stories of his like Timeline, Sphere and Congo turned out to be disappointing crap.

Go Speed Racer!

From Zap2it.com

Richard Roundtree has been added to the cast of Andy and Larry Wachowski's adaptation of "Speed Racer."

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Roundtree will play racing icon Ben Burns, one of Speed's (Emile Hirsch) heroes and a current racing commentator.

"Speed Racer" was created by Tatsuo Yoshida and premiered as an anime series in Japan in 1967. The story centers on a teenaged Speed Racer (Hirsch) who encounters intrigue and danger on his road to racing glory. He is aided by parents Mom (Susan Sarandon) and Pops Racer (John Goodman), girlfriend Trixie (Christina Ricci), little brother Spritle, his monkey Chim Chim and the mechanic Sparky (Kirk Gurry). Lurking in the background is the mysterious Racer X (Matthew Fox).

The Wachowskis have already begun shooting "Speed Racer" in Berlin and Warner Bros. has set a May 2008 release date for the long-awaited project.

Although he'll always be best known as John Shaft, Roundtree attracted a new generation of fans with his recurring role on "Heroes" this season and with guest appearances on "Close to Home," "The Closer" and "Grey's Anatomy."

What it Means to be Cyclon?

From SciFi.com

Cast members of SCI FI Channel's original series Battlestar Galactica told reporters that they weren't happy at first to discover that their characters were Cylons, but they have come to terms with the revelation in their own ways—and hinted the Cylons may not be what they appear.

"Untitled JJ Abrams Movie"

Yeah, that's what it should be called.

You can read more speculation and clues here.